A few days ago the UK’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport introduced the Data Protection Bill 2017 (“the Bill”). Once adopted by the legislature, the Bill will replace the Data Protection Act 1998, which is currently in force. The purpose of the Bill is to transpose the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“the GDPR”) and the EU Directive on the Processing of Personal Data by Government Authorities for Prevention, Detection and Prosecution of Crime (“the Law Enforcement Directive”) into UK law.
At the same time, the Bill aims to prepare the UK for its digital [...] Read more
Over the past year, the German government has been working on legislation to implement the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). On July 6, 2017, Germany did so by passing a statute titled the Data Protection Amendments and Implementation Act. The Act repeals Germany’s venerated Federal Data Protection Act (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz, or BDSG) and replaces it with an entirely new BDSG, aptly referred to as the “BDSG-New.” Germany becomes the first EU Member State to pass a GDPR implementation statute. Given Germany’s reputation as one of, if not the, most serious privacy jurisdiction [...] Read more
Over the past year, the German government has been working on legislation to implement the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). On July 6, 2017, Germany did so by passing a statute titled the Data Protection Amendments and Implementation Act. The Act repeals Germany’s venerated Federal Data Protection Act (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz, or BDSG) and replaces it with an entirely new BDSG, aptly referred to as the “BDSG-New.” Germany becomes the first EU Member State to pass a GDPR implementation statute. Given Germany’s reputation as one of, if not the, most serious privacy jurisdiction [...] Read more
The UK Department for Culture, Media & Sport is planning to present a new Data Protection Bill to the Parliament in early September. This new Bill will replace the current UK Data Protection Act 1998 and will effectively incorporate the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) in the UK legal system.
The new Data Protection Bill is one of the main goals of the recently elected government, as also expressed in the Queen’s Speech in June. Its primary aim is to ensure that the UK upholds the same data protection principles as the rest of the EU once it leaves the Union, which will [...] Read more
The Article 29 Working Party (“WP29”) recently issued an opinion that discusses the processing of employee personal information (Opinion 02/2017). WP29 focuses on the use of new technologies by employers and assesses requirements in light of the upcoming General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”).
Consent and legal bases to process personal information
The WP29 has historically asserted that employees’ consent should not be a legal basis for processing employees’ personal information. The power imbalance between employer and employee leads to an uneven situation where consent [...] Read more
On 18 May 2017, the European Commission (“Commission”) fined Facebook €110 million ($122 million) for misrepresentations made in its application for competition clearance of the company’s acquisition of WhatsApp. In its merger application, Facebook claimed that it would be unable to automatically match Facebook users’ accounts and WhatsApp users’ accounts for marketing and other purposes. However, in August 2016, WhatsApp introduced functionality enabling the linking of WhatsApp users’ phone numbers with Facebook users’ identities. This is the first time since the new Merger Regulation [...] Read more
The Working Party recently issued its first Opinion for 2017, focusing on the EU Commission’s proposed ePrivacy Regulation (WP 247, Opinion 01/2017). The Commission’s proposal, which was published in January this year, aims to modernize the existing ePrivacy Directive (2002/58/EC as amended by 2009/136/EC) which concerns the protection of personal data in the context of electronic communication services. In its Opinion, the Working Party overall welcomed the proposed regulation, yet expressed several points of concern and suggested amendments.
The congratulations…
In welcoming the regulation, [...] Read more
On March 13, 2017, Elizabeth Denham, head of the UK data protection authority (“ICO”) publicly expressed her intention to massively recruit new personnel in an effort to be ready for the European (“EU”) general data protection regulation (“GDPR”).
In a statement released on its website, the ICO announced its plan to recruit new personnel by May 2018, in light of the new responsibilities and enforcement powers granted to the ICO under the GDPR. Ms. Denham later told the press the ICO would hire approximately 200 persons.
Interestingly, the ICO statement comes on the same day the [...] Read more
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will come into force on 25 May 2018, replacing UK’s Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA). It is yet unclear how Brexit will play out, yet in the meantime the United Kingdom is moving to adopt the GDPR principles so that it adequately protects the personal data transferred within the EU. The GDPR sets a high standard for consent and compliance, which means that companies must start preparing for this transition.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued a guidance on GDPR consent on 2 March, explaining its recommended approach to compliance and [...] Read more
On February 7, 2017, the Spanish Ministry of Justice launched a public consultation as a preliminary step before the drafting of a new bill implementing the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”). The press release clarifies that although the GDPR has direct effect in the European Member States, its implementation into Spanish law is not a straightforward exercise because (i) the obligations in existing data protection legislation need to be maintained or amended (as the case may be), and (ii) other sector specific laws containing provisions on data protection need to be updated. A [...] Read more
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